It's interesting looking at the two teams battling for the final playoff spot (I guess you could include Philly in there): ATL and BOS. We have them both twice and can have a serious effect on which one makes the dance. BOS seems dysfunctional - and hurt this season - but I think I might rather see the Thrashers in the first round.

This is a very special team and it's a pleasure to be able to watch them play here in D.C. Enjoy the ride, this is the year.

This team probably won't be able to keep everyone next season and I think this is the deepest offensive team the Caps will ever put on the ice. The team may get better over of the next few seasons but they won't be deeper.

Tampa has better team speed than Boston does. So if we end up playing the Bruins, Erskine would be an asset. He's a better option to bang around guys like Wheeler, Lucic and Thornton than is a Corvo type.

Posted by: cstanton1 | March 25, 2010 2:45 PM

You got me there cstanton, didn't even think about them :) But my point stands, I still just see Erskine as a matchup guy...against most teams, I wouldn't suit him up or want to see him the whole series.

That being said, I don't if I like or dislike Corvo (who Erskine would likely replace as ShaMo is definitely top 6 now)...some games he's fine and I don't notice him, others he makes me cringe with how he pinches up way far up along the boards and his decision making on the defensive end.

Now that could just be him still fitting into the system and getting used to his pairing, but as time goes on, it becomes less and less likely that's the case.

I don't think its going to matter who the Caps play in the East. There is no team that can or should beat them in a 7 game series. The West is however a different story. I think the Caps will have their hands full with alot of Western Conference teams [Chi, SJ, Van for sure]. But if and when they make it to the Cup finals, it will be a great series no matter who they play.

But my point stands, I still just see Erskine as a matchup guy...against most teams, I wouldn't suit him up or want to see him the whole series.
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he is a matchup guy, as is Corvo.

Against Philly, Tampa, Boston, Devils, Rangers I think you go with Erskine.

Against a team like Montreal, maybe Ottawa, you can go with Corvo.

I leave the Pens out because I don't think either Erskine or Corvo is a good option against them. The Pens speed is too much for Erskine at times, and the Pens aggression and forecheck is too much for Corvo. I say go 5 defensemen and dress an extra forechecking fwd like Laing who can also play on the PK

Whoever said upthread that they're worried about Corvo's decision-making - welcome to the club. Yes indeed, it's pretty damn bad. Granted, NHL d-man have a lot going on, but that's why they're in the NHL. And it doesn't matter how well you skate if you're not in the right place, or make the wrong play with the puck.

EX: last night, yes Crosby makes a great pass to Guerin, who has an open net. BUT we're told as 6 yr-olds that on 2-on-1s, let the goalie take the shooter, the d-man cuts off the passing lane. Crosby was on his effing backhand, and Corvo STILL leaves Guerin wide freaking open! This is fundamental stuff - and yes, I'm a little concerned.

From a previous thread, where a fellow caps fan told another cstanton, a fellow caps fan, who mildly questioned the acquisition of Corvo, given what we surrendered for him, to "go find another team." Here is my response:

geez, somebody has the temerity to posit that, oh noes, just maybe, GMGM may have made a mistake on a d-man who's clearly not-as-advertised [John Carlson is hands-down a better NHL d-man, right now] and they're told to go root for another team?!

So, GMGM screwed up, and coughed up way too much for a guy [Corvo] who's clearly a liability in his own end - nobody's perfect. But pretending that GMGM is omniscient gets us nowhere.

unless the Caps have a shutout every game, don't think any of you will be satisfied... they only gave up 3 goals against the defending SC champs last night and like it or not Crosby can make a lot of guys look silly, not just the Caps

I didnt think Corvo had a terrible game last nite. I like his do like his speed. ShaMo.....was that the best game he has ever played last nite or what? I was truely impressed with his game/hitting last nite.

I like the idea of the Pens playing the Flyers first and getting beaten up, and then having to play the Devils (if that matchup is possible). That should soften them up a bit. For the Caps, I'm comfortable with a Boston match-up. Whoever the Caps play after that will likely be tough, although

@govtimbo...how did we give up too much for Corvo? Granted he has not played as well as I hoped, but he will get healthier over the next two months, remember he missed 28 games after his leg was cut by Alzner's skate...I believe his play willimprove and he will be an asset during the playoffs

I've said it before.. no team runs on just one person. Teams, by definition, must be greater than the sum of the parts. Show me any team that had the top 6 Dmen in the league. Or the top 12 forwards. Do we have some good one? Heck, yea. Do we have some weaker ones? Heck, yea. But the job of the coaching staff, and the other players on the ice with the weaker ones, is to do your best with what you have. He (insert any players name here) won't cost us game after game. Because he won't be on the ice the entire game. Except for the Goalie. And so far, ours are better than average. Every team, everywhere will have its weak links. And on a daily basis, they will change, too.

unless the Caps have a shutout every game, don't think any of you will be satisfied... they only gave up 3 goals against the defending SC champs last night and like it or not Crosby can make a lot of guys look silly, not just the Caps

be concerned when they keep giving up like 4 or 5 in a game

Posted by: joek443 | March 25, 2010 3:39 PM | Report abuse

its not the goals against per se, its the turnovers, the time spent needlessly running around one's own end and the resulting momentum shift etc etc etc.

look past the stats, think outside the box. When a forward enters the zone on Corvo's side, that forward pretty much gets to do what he wants to do. If he wants to cycle that puck, he can do that. If he wants to set up a play, he can do that. If he wants to drive the net, he can do that too.

It does not have to result in a goal each time for it to be a negative play from the Caps' perspective. Enough of those types of plays and your forwards start getting worn down running around in your own end, your goalie gets stressed because your defense isn't getting that puck out in a timely fashion, the other team gains confidence and momentum etc etc.

I believe his play willimprove and he will be an asset during the playoffs

Posted by: boomer44 | March 25, 2010 3:48 PM | Report abuse

can i ask respectfully, BASED ON WHAT?

what exactly have you seen in Corvo's game in the past that makes you think his defensive play will improve significantly? To me, he's a bit weaker than he usually is but even at his best he was a bad defensive player.

what chaps me is, we acquired a weaker defenseman than we currently already had on our roster. And we play it off as some genius McPhee move. Its silly. We just did the Canes a big favor for no reason and we weakened our defense in the process. No move would've been better than inserting a Corvo into our lineup every night.

next year we not have to worry about Corvo, he is a UFA and I expect the Caps will go with Schultz, Green, Poti, Erskine, Carlson, Alzner & sign either S, Morrison or another UFA in the same salary price range

like the idea of the Pens playing the Flyers first and getting beaten up, and then having to play the Devils (if that matchup is possible). That should soften them up a bit. For the Caps, I'm comfortable with a Boston match-up. Whoever the Caps play after that will likely be tough, although

Posted by: zmega | March 25, 2010 3:48 PM | Report abuse

I would love to play the flyers in the first round...they are pretty terrible right now and I don't think they would wear any team down now

I diasagree that we got weaker...when 100% Corvo is grittier and a slight upgrade from Pothier, both are UFA's, and we gave carolina our #10 prospect who had not been called up this year, and would have .005% chance of making th ebig club next season, word is he Osala was a project still & by the time he coul dhelp on the NHL level, we wil have had time to get someone else in his place and skill level, not much of a gamble if you ask me.

One thing is certain: Caps would not have to play #2 and #3 seed until the conference finals, but those teams (assuming they both survive the first round) would have to play each other. I'd just as soon those two teams be Pitt and NJ. I'd much rather play Atlanta or Montreal than Philadelphia in the first round.

Corvo is "grittier?" How on earth can you say that - that's like PJ Maguire calling JS 'a whole lot of nasty' just cuz he's tall. Corvo's big, but I don't know that he plays big. And Pothier was/is hands-down a better decision-maker. Seriously, NHL D-men practice 2-on-1s every single day, as he has for his whole career - and he's still playing the shot?! When the guy's on his backhand?

I came into this with an open mind, but this is ridiculous - the guy simply has not played well, at all. He is not a top-4 d-man on a team looking to go deep in the playoffs, from what I've seen. GMGM's made some good calls, but saying this is one of them is not reality. OK, NHL D is a tough position, I'll give you - but I don't know that sound decision-making should change that much just because a guy is still recovering from an injury.

I not sure we're weaker either. Different, certainly. I guess the problem I have is trying to measure changes as absolutes. Corvo is different. Maybe the "intangibles" he brings are better than what we gave up. Maybe what we will find out is that if he's paired with Alzner they are the best duo in Hockey. Maybe not. I don't know. Maybe Osala will end up being great. Ultimately, the proof will be in the pudding as they say. And, no matter what happens, it will be a hell of a ride! And isn't it great we have a team good enough that we can debate this instead of Health care?

look past the stats, think outside the box. When a forward enters the zone on Corvo's side, that forward pretty much gets to do what he wants to do. If he wants to cycle that puck, he can do that. If he wants to set up a play, he can do that. If he wants to drive the net, he can do that too.

Posted by: cstanton1 | March 25, 2010 4:00 PM

This is what we saw last night vs the Pens whenever Poti and Corvo were out on the ice. The Pens would dump it in, cycle and forecheck and the puck had a hard time getting out of the zone.

When the other two pairs were on the ice, it was more of a back and forth game you'd expect to see when the Caps and Pens get together instead of seeing Pens forwards run roughshod in our D zone.

I would be interested in seeing 77 and 26 together on the 3rd pairing, moving Carlson up to the 2nd with Poti and keeping 52 and 55 together. But then again, 74 and 26 has been pretty damn good together, good enough to warrant 2nd pair minutes.

All this said, and speaks to joek's main point: top to bottom, this is a damn good team. If all we're nitpicking about is one player, we're much better off than pretty much any team in the league right now. It speaks volumes about how well everyone is playing on the whole and a far cry from 4 years ago when you could throw a dart at the roster and be able to complain about who it hit.

This is what we saw last night vs the Pens whenever Poti and Corvo were out on the ice. The Pens would dump it in, cycle and forecheck and the puck had a hard time getting out of the zone.

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exactly, now think playoff hockey when the pace is even faster and more intense. A forward's eyes will light up knowing how easy it will be to maintain puck possession in our zone when Corvo-Poti are on the ice together. Even when Corvo was on the ice w/Green, poor Green was doing all he could to get that puck away and clear the zone w/no help from his partner. He makes every defensive pairing a little weaker. The only times he is a benefit is when the other team dumps the puck and does a line change. Then JC can go back at ease to gather the puck up and start a rush.

Carlson's here to stay. I'd have to say Corvo gets the boot. Maybe its not a bad thing to start Corvo against the Bruins. They're a hungry team trying to make up for their 2nd round loss last yr. Lucic and company will try and put our guys thru the boards and JC is an easy mark.

for a brief period of time I think Corvo tried to play some defense but then he got jumped in a fight and got scared to play that way anymore. As a King he was nothing. As a Senator he threw a few hip checks but then stopped doing it and got booed whenever he touched the puck by Ottawa fans. As a Cane, he was asked to play both ways and so he started finishing some checks and playing harder defensively until he threw a hit on Boulton and got jumped by Valabik and then that was the last time he decided to actually engage forwards aggressively.

i don't care how many times you get jumped, if you change your game to avoid conflict that means you've let the other guy win.

77 didn't do so bad against the Bees last year - from what I remember, 23 to 26 minutes every night... he was paired mostly with Pitkanen, right? That could be the key, and I don't think he is a good fit with Poti.

@cstanton - you nailed it, Corvo on the breakout in the playoffs definitely has me concerned; we can't expect to keep scoring at this rate come playoff-time. I will try to settle down, I know there's still some time to get it straightened out - but my concern is there's such a drop-off btw our top-5 D, and then Corvo.

And that BB doesn't just blindly keep trying to protect GMGM and keep throwing him out there. I am not overwhelmed, at this point.

on his bad day, JoeC is a serious defensive liability; on his good day, he is a... Mike Green. He really should be on the 3rd D pair - kind of like where Pothier was. The real problem is - we don't have a true 2nd D pair. On a brighter side, looks like every other team in the East would love to have THAT as their biggest problem.

don't think I've ever seen this kinda vendetta against an average player like Corvo, not to mention he actually plays for the Caps at the moment... usually Caps' fans reserve this kinda hatred for guys like Crosby or Lemieux

CStanton, in the interest of full disclosure, the booing in Ottawa that you mention was when Corvo returned to Ottawa playing for the 'Canes. The fans were angry because Corvo had asked to be traded from Ottawa.

I have been critical of Corvo at times too, but I think some of this is over the top.

Disagree strongly that we don't have a good 2nd pairing btw - it's just that John Carlson should probably be on it. Maybe with Poti, or maybe with ShaMo, because those two seem to have already developed such good chemistry - but in any case, Carlson should be playing ahead of Corvo, he's already a better all-around NHL d-man and will only get better!